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L 13 
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1838 
Copy 1 



THE 



ACT OF INCORPORATION, 



CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS 



AMERICAN INSTITUTE 



INSTRUCTION. 



S- 



BOS'i kjIm 

L.D BY PERKINS & MARVIN. 
1838. 



THE 



ACT OF INCORPORATION, 



CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS 



OF THE 



AMERICAN INSTITUTE 



OF 



INSTRUCTION. 



BOSTON: 

PRINTED BY PERKINS & MARVIN. 

1838. 



Ul3 



ACT OP INCORPORATION. 



COMMONWEALTH OP MASSACHUSETTS. 

IK THE YEAR OF OUR LORD ONE THOUSAND EIGHT HUNDRED AND THIRTT-OITE. 

An Act to incorporate the American Institute of Instruction. 

Section 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives, in Oen- 
eral Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, That Francis Wayland, Jr., 
William B. Calhoun, William Sullivan, John Adams, John Park, Nathan Lord, 
Thomas H. Gallaudet, Andrew Yates, Theodore Frelinghuysen, Roberts Vaux, 
William C. Fowler, Reuben Haines, Benjamin O. Peers, Nathan Guilford, Gideon 
F. Thayer, Solomon P. Miles, WiUiam C. Woodbridge, Ebenezer Bailey, Abraham 
Andrews, Otis Everett and James G. Carter, together with their associates, be, 
and they hereby are made and constituted a Corporation in the City of Boston by 
the name of the American Institute of Instruction, with all the powers, rights, 
duties and liabilities usually incident to Corporations, for the purpose of promoting 
and improving the means of education and instruction in Morality, Science and 
Literature. 

Section 2. Be it further enacted, That the said Corporation may appoint such 
ofScers and make such by-laws, rules and regulations, as it may see fit; provided 
the same be consistent with the Constitution and Laws of this Commonwealth. 

Section 3. Be it further enacted, That said Corporation may hold real estate 
to the value of ten thousand dollars, and personal estate to the value of twenty 
thousand dollars, in its corporate name ; and use and improve the same for the 
benefit of this institution, and for all lawful purposes incident to the powers hereby 
granted. 

Section 4. Be it further enacted. That any person named in this Act may call 
the first meeting of the members of this Corporation by public advertisement in 
any newspaper printed in Boston, two weeks successively before the day of 
meeting. 

Section 5. Be it further enacted. That this Act shall be subject to be altered, 
or amended, or repealed at any time, at the will of the Legislature. 

Approved March 4, 1831. 






V3 



AMERICAN INSTITUTE 

OP 

INSTRUCTION. 



On the 15th of March, 1830, a meeting of teachers and 
other friends of education was held at the Columbian Hall 
in Boston. It was continued by adjournment from day to 
day until the 19th, and occupied with statements relative to 
the condition and wants of schools, in different parts of the 
New England States. It was thought that advantages would 
arise from future meetings of a similar kind, and from the 
formation of a society of teachers. 

A committee was accordingly chosen on the 18th, to pre- 
pare a constitution for such a society, and to take measures 
for a future meeting. E. Bailey, B. D. Emerson, A. Andrews, 
G. B. Emerson, and G. F. Thayer of Boston, H. K. Oliver of 
Salem, and J. Wilder of Watertown, were this committee. 

The work assigned them was executed at several meetings 
of the committee, held in April, May and June. The sketch 
of a constitution was formed; and, in order that the conven- 
tion, which might be assembled to take it into consideration, 
might be usefully occupied in the intervals of business, it 
was determined to invite gentlemen to give lectures before 
the convention, upon subjects of interest to the cause of 
education. 

Such are the origin and occasion of the Discourses which 
have been annually pubhshed by the American Institute of 
Instruction. 



The committee invited the lecturers, and suggested the 
subjects. Everything else was left entirely to the lecturers. 
Their opinions are their own. Perfect uniformity could not 
be expected from men who came from different and distant 
parts of the country, and who met for the first time at this 
convention. This free expression of opmions, independently 
formed, will not, certainly, be considered unfavorable to the 
eliciting of truth. 

Agreeably to their instructions, the committee called a 
meeting, by invitations extensively circulated through the 
country, in the newspapers. The time of the summer holi- 
days, the season of literary anniversaries, was thought most 
favorable to a general attendance. 

The convention met on the 19th of August, in the Rep- 
resentatives' Hall, at Boston. It consisted of several hundred 
persons, most of them actual teachers, from at least eleven 
different States of the Union. It was organized by the 
choice of William B. Calhoun of Springfield, as chairman, 
and George B. Emerson and Dr. J. W. M'Kean of Boston, 
as secretaries of the convention. In the subsequent absence 
of Mr. Calhoun, William Sullivan of Boston was called to 
the chair. 

The convention proceeded immediately to discuss the 
draught of a constitution which was reported by the com- 
mittee. This discussion occupied a large portion of four 
days, and terminated in the unanimous adoption of the 
constitution, which follows. The chief alterations from the 
original draught are in the preamble which was first offered 
in the convention, and in articles first and fourth. A less 
comprehensive and assuming name, " The JVew England 
Association of Teachers,^^ had been oftered by the committee. 
But as several of the Middle, Southern and Western States, 
were represented in the convention, and many persons, not 
teachers, were desirous of belonging to the society which was 
to be formed, it became obviously proper to adopt a name 
which should exclude none. 

No country, it has often been remarked, has so great an 
interest in the education of its citizens, as this. Not only 



private welfare and happiness, and the advancement of the 
arts and sciences, but the institutions of public justice, the 
privileges of civil and religious liberty, and our very exis- 
tence as a free republic, depend on a high state of moral and 
intellectual culture. 

The formation of the Institute, it is hoped, w^ill do some- 
thing towards elevating the standard and increasing the 
efficiency of popular instruction. 

It will furnish the means, by the cooperation of its members, 
of obtaining an exact knowledge of the present condition of 
the schools, in all parts of the country. It will tend to render 
universal, so that it shall pervade every district and village, a 
strong conviction of the paramount national importance of 
preserving and extending the means of popular instruction ; 
thus securing the aid of multitudes of fellow-laborers in 
every portion of the country. It will tend to raise the 
standard of the qualifications of instructors, so that the 
business of teaching shall not be the last resort of duhiess 
and indolence, but shall be considered, as it was in the days 
of republican Greece, an occupation worthy of the highest 
talents and ambition. It will hardly fail to show that educa- 
tion is a science, to be advanced, like every other science, by 
experiment ; whose principles are to be fixed, and its capaci- 
ties determined, by experunent ; which is to be entered upon 
by men of a philosophical mind, and pursued with a philo- 
sophical spirit. It will be likely to bring forward the modes 
and objects of instruction in foreign nations and ancient 
times, and their applicability to the state of things among 
ourselves. It cannot fail to enlist openly, on the side of 
popular education, the highest intellect and influence in the 
nation. If it accomplish these, or any of these objects, it 
will amply reward the labors of all who have acted in its 
formation. And that it will have this tendency^ the feelings 
of the teachers who attended the convention, may be ap- 
pealed to, in proof. Great numbers of these had come 
hundreds of miles, some more than five hundred, to be 
present on this occasion. 

Many a teacher, on the fii'st morning of the convention, 



must have ascended the steps that led to the Hall of Rep- 
resentatives, and looked out upon the unequalled prospect 
commanded by this chosen spot in the "city of the pilgrims," 
with a sense of loneliness, and of doubt and misgiving ; but 
when he beheld the numbers that came flocking from near 
and distant parts, and saw the earnestness with which they 
were engaged in the good cause, and the ability evinced in 
conducting the business of the convention, every one must 
have gone home to his solitary duties, strengthened and 
cheered by the thought, that strong hands were in the work, 
and that he was no longer toihng alone. 



CONSTITUTION 

OF THE 

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF INSTRUCTION. 



PREAMBLE. 



We, whose names are hereunto subjoined, pledging 
our zealous efforts to promote the cause of popular edu- 
cation, agree to adopt the following Constitution, and to 
obey the By-laws made in conformity thereto. 

ARTICLE I. — NAME AND OBJECT. 

The Society shall be known by the title of the Ameri- 
can Institute of Instruction. Its object shall be the 
diffusion of useful knowledge in regard to education. 

article II. — members. 

1. Any gentleman of good moral character, interested 
in the subject of Education, may become a member of 
this Institute, by signing this Constitution, and paying 
at the time of his admission, a fee of one dollar.* 

2, An annual assessment of one dollar, shall be laid 
upon each member, by neglecting to pay which, for more 
than one year after due notice from the Treasurer, he 
shall cease to be a member of the society. 

* Members of the Institute may receive their certificates of membership by 
sending to the Treasurer the annual assessment. Gentlemen residing at a dis- 
tance, who wish to join the Institute, may do so by sending to the Treasurer one 
dollar, and authorizing him to sign their names to the Constitution. 



8 

3. Any gentleman, by paying at one time the sum of 
twenty dollars, shall become a member of the Institute for 
life, and be exempted from all future assessments. 

4. Honorary members may be elected by the Institute, 
at the recommendation of two-thirds of the Directors 
present at any stated meeting of that Board. 

5. For dishonorable or immoral conduct, a member 
may be dismissed from the society, by a vote of two-thirds " 
of the members present, at any regular meeting. 

6. Ladies, engaged in the business of instruction, shall 
be invited to hear the annual address, lectures, and reports 
of committees on subjects of Education. 

ARTICLE in. MEETINGS. 

1. The annual meeting of the Institute shall be held 
on the Thursday next preceding the last Wednesday in 
August, at such place and hour as the Board of Directors 
shall order. 

2. Special meetings may be called by the Directors. 

3. Due notice of the meetings of the society shall be 
given in the public journals. 

ARTICLE IV. OFFICERS. 

1 . The officers of the society shall be a President, Vice 
Presidents, a Recording Secretary, two Corresponding 
Secretaries, a Treasurer, three Curators, three Censors, 
and twelve Counsellors, who shall constitute a Board of 
Directors. 

2. The officers shall be elected annually, in August, by 
ballot. 

ARTICLE V. DUTIES OF OFFICERS. 

1. The President, or, in his absence, one of the Vice 
Presidents, or, in their absence, a President pro tempore^ 
shall preside at the meetings of the Institute. 

2. The Recording Secretary shall notify all meetings 



9 

of the society, and of the Board of Directors; and he 
shall keep a record of their transactions. 

3. The Corresponding Secretaries, subject to the order 
of the Board of Directors, shall be the organs of com- 
munication with other societies, and with individuals. 

4. The Treasurer shall collect and receive all moneys 
of the Institute, and shall render an accurate statement 
of all his receipts and payments, annually, and whenever 
called upon by the Board of Directors ; to whom he shall 
give such bonds for the faithful performance of his duty, 
as they shall require. He shall make no payment except 
by their order. 

5. To the Board of Directors shall be intrusted the 
general interests of the society, with authority to devise 
and carry into execution such measures as may promote 
its objects. It shall be their duty to appoint some suitable 
person to deliver an address before the Institute, at their 
annual meeting ; to select competent persons to serve on 
Standing Committees, or to deliver lectures, on such sub- 
jects relating to education as they may deem expedient 
and useful ; to collect such facts, as may promote the 
general objects of the society ; and to provide convenient 
accommodations for the meetings. They shall, at the 
annual meeting, exhibit their records, and report to the 
Institute. They shall have power to fill all vacancies in 
their Board, from members of the society, and make By- 
Laws for its government. 

6. It shall be the particular duty of the Curators to 
select books, and to take charge of the library of the 
Institute. 

7. The Censors shall have authority to procure for 
publication the annual address and lectures. It shall be 
their duty to examine the annual reports of the Standing 
Committees, and all other communications made to the 
society; and to publish such of them, as, in their estima- 



10 

tioii, may tend to throw light on the subject of education, 
and aid the faithful instructor in the discharge of his duty. 

8. It shall be the duty of the President, the Vice Presi- 
dents, and Counsellors, severally, to recommend to the 
consideration of the Board of Directors such subjects of 
inquiry, as, in their opinion, may best advance the great 
objects of the Institute. 

9. Stated meetings of the Board of Directors shall be 
held at Boston on the first Wednesday in January; on the 
last Wednesday in May; and on the day next preceding 
that of the annual meeting of the Institute in August. 

ARTICLE VI. — BY-LAWS AND AMENDMENTS. 

1. By-Laws, not repugnant to this Constitution, may 
be adopted at any regular meeting. 

2. This Constitution may be altered or amended, by a 
vote of two-thirds of the members present at the annual 
meeting, provided two-thirds of the Directors, present at 
a stated meeting, shall agree to recommend the proposed 
alteration or amendment. 



BY-L.AWS. 



I. At all meetings of the Board of Directors, seven 
members shall be necessary to constitute a quorum to do 
business. 

II. The Board of Directors shall annually choose a 
Committee of Finance, whose duty it shall be to audit 
the accounts of the Treasurer, and, under the control of 
the Board of Directors, to draw orders on the Treasurer 
for the payment of charges against the Institute. 

III. It shall be the duty of the Recording Secretary, 
on application of any two Directors, to call special meet- 
ings of the Board. 



OFFICERS 

OF THE 

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF INSTRUCTION. 

For the year 1837—1838, 



PRESIDENT. 

William B. Calhoun, Springfield, Mass. 

VICE PRESIDENTS. 

James G. Carter, Lancaster, Mass. 
Lyman Beecher, Cincinnati, Ohio. 
Andrew S. Yates, Chitteningo, N. Y. 
John Griscom, New York, N. Y. 
John Pierpont, Boston. 
John Park, Worcester, Mass. 
Daniel Kimball, Needham, Mass. 
William C. Fowler, Middlebury, Vt. 
Walter R. Johnson, Philadelphia, Pa. 
Martin S. Hurlburt, do. 

Frederick Hall, Baltimore, Md. 
Daniel Oliver, Cambridge, Mass. 
Nehemiah Cleveland, Newbury, Mass. 
Ebenezer Bailey, Boston. 
Solomon P. Miles, do. 
Elipha White, John's Island, S. C. 
Stephen C. Phillips, Salem, Mass. 
Henry K. Oliver, do. 

Jacob Abbott, Roxbury, Mass. 
Gideon F. Thayer, do, 
John Wheeler, Burlington, Vt. 
Benjamin L. Hale, Geneva, N. Y. 
Dennison Olmsted, New Haven, Conn. 



12 



Samuel Pettes, Boston. 
Ethan A. Andrews, Boston. 
Samuel P. Newman, Brunswick, Me. 
John Kingsbury, Providence, R. I. 

RECORDING SECRETARY. 

Thomas Gushing, Jr., Boston. 

CORRESPONDING SECRETARIES. 

George B. Emerson, Boston. 
Henry R. Cleveland, do. 

TREASURER. 

William D, Ticknor, Boston. 

CURATORS. 

Henry W. Carter, Boston. 

Joseph Hale Abbot, do. 

Josiah Fairbank, Charlestown, Mass. 

CENSORS. 

Charles K. Dillaway, Roxbury. 
William A. Alcott, do. 

William J. Adams, Boston. 

COUNSELLORS. 

Jonathan Blanchard, Andover, Mass. 
Willian H. Brooks, Salem, Mass. 
Benjamin F. Farnsworth, Providence, R. I. 
Benjamin Greenleaf, Bradford, Mass. 
Alfred Greenleaf, Salem, Mass. 
Samuel R. Hall, Plymouth, N. H. 
Peter Mackintosh, Boston. 
William Russell, Philadelphia, Pa. 
Dyer H. Sanborn, Gilford, N. H. 
Goold Brown, New York, N. Y. 
Theodore D wight, Jr., New York, N. Y. 
Emory Washburn, Worcester, Mass. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

I! 



021 477 503 7 ^ 



